The final chords of Thursday afternoon’s Toronto Symphony Orchestra concert at Roy Thomson Hall rang out grandly and were greeted by enthusiastic applause, but sustained musical thrills were few and far between.

The big, established symphony orchestras — especially North American ones — are often criticized for their predictable, middle-of-the-road programming. The TSO is no exception.

So, in an act of bravery, the organization programmed its first performance of the Concerto for Piano and Orchestra by late Polish composer Witold Lutoslawski, in honour of what would have been his 100th birthday.

Premiered in 1988, this is a four-movement piece with the scope of a Romantic concerto, but rendered in a modern idiom.

The orchestra invited Canadian star Janina Fialkowska — best known for her elegant interpretations of the Romantic music of Frédéric Chopin and Franz Liszt — to do the honours with young American guest conductor James Gaffigan.

The result was less than satisfactory — and not for lack of promising elements. Fialkowska’s playing was fleet and crisp, with notes cascading from her piano with the fluid clarity of a Rocky Mountain waterfall.

Gaffigan kept the orchestra on a short, taut leash, ordering up a fresh-pressed crispness to the sound.

But for all these fine efforts, the piece failed to fly, even in the great final crescendo that brings it to a dramatic, abrupt close.

The Concerto never found its momentum; its sails never fully filled with a helpful breeze.

Perhaps it was because there were more empty seats than filled ones at Roy Thomson Hall, or maybe it was because the previous piece — the Carnival Overture by Antonin Dvorák — had featured the supersized forces of the TSO plus the Toronto Symphony Youth Orchestra practically spilling off the edges of the stage.

To close the afternoon, the audience was safely returned to the late 19th century with Johannes Brahms’ well-loved Symphony No. 2.

The pacing of the first and last movements was brisk, and Gaffigan did everything he could to highlight the score’s rich harmonies and orchestration. But in the two slower movements, the music, for all its beauty and fine playing, again felt adrift rather than purposeful.

In a city filled with entertainment options this weekend, this isn’t enough reason to drop everything for Saturday’s final performance.

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